BIS Newsletter

Happy April BIS Families!

There have been a lot of exciting things happening at BIS! This week was our district's annual College & Career Week. On Wednesday, we welcomed 32 guest speakers into our building to talk to students about their career journey. Students had the opportunity to attend 3 different sessions and were very eager to learn about so many exciting careers! To wrap up the week, over 25 volunteers came to our school today to teach Junior Achievement programs. By delivering hands-on and interactive lessons, volunteers encourage students to open their eyes to opportunities like being an entrepreneur, preparing for the workforce, solving problems, and being a leader. Junior Achievement volunteer-led programming fosters work-readiness, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy skills, and uses experiential learning to inspire students to dream big and reach their potential. Thank you to our School Counselor Mrs. Guay for organizing an exciting College and Career Week for our students.

Staff Appreciation Week: May 8-12th is National Teacher Appreciation Week, a very special week to recognize the hard work and resilience of our educators. Districtwide we will be finding small ways to extend an additional thank you to our staff for their perseverance and continued dedication to Biddeford students. However, educators do what they do every day because of their commitment to students and the impact they are able to make. Their experiences with kids and families are what drives their passion for education and help make our communities a better place to be. Please join us in sending an extra message of gratitude to the amazing professionals at BIS that support our students every day!

Spring State Testing: Our third and fourth grade students will be taking the Maine Through Year State Assessment in Math and Reading over the next two weeks (May 1-12). During this window, it is especially important that students arrive to school on time so we can ensure they have a comfortable and relaxed testing experience. To support your child in doing their very best, we encourage the recommended hours of sleep, a healthy breakfast at home or at school, and conversations at home about taking their time and doing their best. Please reach out to your child's teacher if you have any additional questions regarding testing.

Last day of School: The last day of school will be June 16, 2023. To make up for the missed time from snow days, a plan was approved by the Maine Department of Education and the district letter is linked below with details. Reminder that next Tuesday May 2nd and Wednesday May 3rd will have late dismissal at 3:20pm.

We are looking forward to additional fun events at BIS this spring! BIS is heading to the Portland Sea Dogs on May 25th and we are so excited for our end-of-year events.

Sincerely,

Lindsey Nadeau

Biddeford Intermediate School Principal

BIS IMPORTANT DATES

• May 2: Extended Day (students dismiss at 3:20pm)
• May 3: Extended Day *NO EARLY RELEASE* (students dismiss at 3:20pm)
• May 2-11: Spring NWEA/Through Year Math & Reading Assessments
• May 8-12: National Teacher Appreciation Week
• May 11: BMS Welcomes Incoming 5th Graders (5-7pm) @ BMS
• May 17: BIS Spring Concert (6:30pm) @ BIS Gym
  
• May 25: BIS goes to the Sea Dogs
• May 26: Fun Friday - Wear Red White & Blue!

COMMUNITY DATES

• April 29: Biddeford Athletics Hall of Honor Induction Class of 2022 - Open to All. Ceremony at 3pm in BHS Little Theater, followed by Social at 5:30pm at Dutch Elm Golf Course.

• May 5: Live Pro Wresting (7pm) @ BHS Tiger Gym
  

• May 10: School Committee Meeting (5pm) @ BHS Little Theater
  

• May 24: School Committee Meeting (7pm) @ BHS Little Theater
  

In 2015, the state of Maine passed a law requiring that all public schools must implement Sexual Abuse and Prevention education for grades preK-5. Once we return from vacation, our school counselor, Mrs. Guay will teach this very important lesson to all homerooms. At our level, she will focus on the basics of body safety, body boundaries and identifying trusted adults. Please take a look at the letter attached below for more information about this important topic! These lessons can be outlined in this letter: Sexual Abuse Prevention

With the District-Wide Art Show behind us, we typically spend the Spring working with clay. Unfortunately, our kiln requires some small repairs, so we won’t be able to learn about clay this year. We’ll substitute other 3-D art media, such as paper mache and found-object sculpture, allowing us plenty of opportunity to get our hands messy!

3rd-grade students - After April vacation it’s…..RECORDER TIME!!! All students in 3rd grade will be given a recorder. We will play songs in music class and students will be able to take their recorders home at the end of the unit. Students will participate in “recorder karate” where they get to earn different colored ribbons (like belts.) Hopefully, we will have lots of black belts in our school!

4th-grade students - Does anyone know this tune- “Nationwide is on your side.” It’s a commercial jingle! After April vacation students in 4th grade will be listening to and writing their own jingles. Students are allowed to find/research jingles on their own, and each class will try to find the most jingles. They can listen to the radio, listen to commercials on TV, or look them up online with parental permission. They can also ask the adults to teach them some jingles. Anyone know this one…”I should have bought it when I saw it…..”? You know the rest!

This month in the library, we had fun reading “Dragons Love Tacos” by Adam Rubin. We look forward to reading the sequel next month. We also learned about flamingos and how they get their color in “Fussy Flamingo” by Shelly Vaughan James.

This month we completed Big Problem/Small Problem Court. We will practice mindfulness and revisit goal planning. Following April Break, we are going to work on our conversation skills.

Ships Ahoy! Classes in PE splashed into April with a new favorite game called Pirates of the Caribbean! There's no lack of action in this thriller that uses throwing, guarding, blocking as well as teamwork and strategizing on a whole new level. No less than 4 teams do battle in this fast paced winner take all competition. Making and breaking deals is a common theme for these pirates and so is finishing class with a red face and ready for some hydration!

The Blast Summer Program is looking for current Pre-K through 3rd grade students interested in participating in their free programming summer! Blast is partnering with the Biddeford Jumpstart Intervention Program to provide targeted learning opportunities and exciting enrichment activities during this 6-week program. For more information about registering, please contact Rebecca Cote at rcote@biddeforschools.me.

CURRENT Pre-K-3rd GRADERS: Current Pre-K through 3rd-grade students should inquire about the 6-week Blast/Jumpstart Summer Program (above).

CURRENT 4th GRADERS: The Jumpstart Intervention Program is looking for current 4th-grade students interested in participating in the free academic intervention program this summer. This 4-week program is intended for students who would benefit from a targeted academic boost this summer.

Anticipated Dates: July 5-28 (Mon-Thurs)

Time: 8:00am-12:00pm

Director: Kelsey Langill

Transportation & Food Services (breakfast & lunch) are provided!

INTERESTED IN TUTORING? Are you interested in tutoring sessions during the month of July but are unable to commit to the 4-or 6-week Jumpstart/Blast programs? Would you like your child to come in for a shorter burst (1 hour, 2-3 times a week in July) and practice their reading or math skills with one of our Jumpstart interventionists? Please reach out asap to inquire about scheduling!

For more information about registering your child for the 4-week Jumpstart program OR summer tutoring, please contact Kelsey Langill at klangill@biddefordschools.me

Biddeford Recreation's Safari Summer Camp is open to kids entering Grades K-5 only. Registration is now open for 3-5 days per week, and parents may choose to register for certain weeks or the full summer (8 weeks only: June 20-August 11 with a caravan camp available August 14-18). Payment plans are available and any requests for financial aid must be submitted no later than May 5th. For more information about registering, please CLICK HERE or on the image below.

RUNS MARCH 12-MAY 27

Shop at Hannaford and easily raise money for our school! For every four participating products you purchase (look for the shelf tags in the store or the apple symbol online), our school will receive $3.00 simply by redeeming your receipt.

NEW for 2023: Deposit School Dollars online using the Hannaford Helps Schools app to donate to a specific school.

Lindsey Nadeau, Principal

Email: lnadeau@biddefordschools.me
Website: https://biddefordme.sites.thrillshare.com/o/bis
Location: 335 Hill Street, Biddeford, ME, USA
Phone: 207-282-5957
Facebook: facebook.com/biddefordintermediate